Variants

Worldwide molecular studies have identified 330 000 SARS-CoV-2  viral sequences which have been collected and shared via the GISAID Initiative (ww.gisaid.org). This data is essential to observe the evolution of the pandemic and the emergence of new variants. Mutations appear within the spike protein, which interacts with the ACE2 cellular receptor to enable the virus to […]

Manaus is one of the most affected cities in Brazil. Despite having reached levels of infection where herd immunity should occur (see News-COVID-19.info letter December 14-20 2020), it nevertheless succumbed to a second wave in December 2020. As a consequence, 31 samples were taken in order to try to understand the resurgence of the pandemic; […]

New variants of SARS-CoV-2 have been discovered recently, notably the VOC202020/01, known as the “English variant” and the 501Y.V2, known as the “South African variant”. Scientists are trying to understand why these variants seem to spread so quickly, and if the new vaccines will still give protection against them. The genomes of the 2 variants […]

A new variant coming from the United Kingdom has just been discovered. This new strain of the virus has 17 mutations, of which the most important is situated in position 501 of the spike protein (N501Y, where the asparagine amino acid is replaced by a tyrosine amino acid). In principle this mutation allows SARS-CoV-2 to […]

The spread of a viral pandemic may be a favourable environment for mutations potentially able to modify the development of the illness, its virulence, and the virus’ capacities for transmission. SARS-CoV-2 possesses a correction activity as its genome is replicated. As a result there are relatively few mutations that accumulate over time in comparison with […]